NJ Human Services Awards Contract for Crisis Prevention & Intervention Team Serving Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and Mental Health Needs

October 22, 2024

(TRENTON) - Commissioner Sarah Adelman today announced Human Services has awarded a contract to develop evidence-based, community crisis prevention and intervention services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and mental health needs.

Human Services' Division of Developmental Disabilities (DDD) awarded a $3.2 million in contract to create a new START Model program. The contract was awarded to the Young Adult Institute, or YAI. The program is projected to begin in spring 2025. The program will be active in Atlantic, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Gloucester, Mercer, Middlesex, Monmouth, Ocean, and Salem counties.

START - which stands for Systemic, Therapeutic, Assessment, Resources, and Treatment - provides community-based crisis prevention and intervention services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and mental health needs. This model will expand community capacity to provide an integrated response to adults at risk of or experiencing a behavioral health crisis, their families, and those who support them, and to foster cross-systems relationships that support the health and wellbeing of each person served. The program focuses on reducing emergency room visits, hospitals admissions, caregiver burnout, and calls to law enforcement as well as building community capacity to successfully support people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and mental health needs.

"START is well-regarded for its individualized, solution-oriented methods that utilize positive psychology and other proven practices to address mental health issues, particularly those that are frequently misdiagnosed, under-diagnosed, or overlooked in individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities," Commissioner Adelman said. "This contract award marks another advancement in our efforts to enhance and broaden crisis response services, ensuring top-quality care for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Their safety and quality of life remain our top priorities."

"This groundbreaking approach will move us closer to our objective of delivering the most thorough services for all adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, including those with complex behavioral and mental health needs," Deputy Commissioner for Aging and Disability Services Kaylee McGuire said. "By implementing the START model, we are broadening the range of support options to enhance our crisis response and prevention strategies with proven, effective methods."

The National Center for START Services, an initiative of the University of New Hampshire Institute on Disability, will serve as a collaborative partner in the development of these programs.

The awardee will assemble both a clinical team and therapeutic coaching team, and convene a START Advisory Council representing regional leadership, state leadership, and interdisciplinary organizations and service providers to guide the implementation of START.

START also follows a range of Department efforts during the Murphy Administration including funding for additional community-based emergency beds, the creation of community-based and acute behavioral stabilization programs that expand the array of services available for individuals with developmental disabilities and complex behavioral and mental health needs, and granting funding for direct support professionals to obtain a national dual diagnosis specialist certification to enhance training for working with individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities and mental illness.

"We are eager to roll out this program to enhance crisis response for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities," DDD Assistant Commissioner Jonathan Seifried said.